“The St. Paul of the gangster era springs vividly to life again . . . A captivating glimpse into a shadowy era in the city’s history.” —Community Reporter From their home base in Minnesota, the Karpis-Barker Gang cut a swath of crime and terror across the Midwest in the early 1930s. They kidnapped two important businessmen and held them for exorbitant ransoms. They stole payrolls and robbed banks as the bullets flew. Corrupt police and wily crime bosses helped Alvin Karpis and the Barker brothers Freddie and Doc every step of the way. Who were these men and women? What made them into killers and kidnappers? How did their reckless lifestyles lead to their downfall? From Ma Barker to Volney Davis to Edna Murray the Kissing Bandit, authors Deborah Frethem and Cynthia Schreiner Smith delve into the crimes, personalities and motivations of one of the most successful and infamous gangs in American history.
Was Arizona Donnie Clark, AKA Kate “Ma” Barker the mastermind behind the Barker gang terrorizing the Midwest during the early years of the great Depression? Or was she a terrible mother who urged her sons to criminal behavior for her own financial gain? Or does the truth lie somewhere in between. This lively retelling of the legend of Ma Barker and her boys is full of action, intrigue, and the answers to mysteries that have lingered for more than 70 years.
The Barker-Karpis gang was one of the Depression Era's most ruthless, operated throughout the Midwestern U.S. from Missouri into the Dakotas. They were largely unnoticed as the public's attention was fixed upon the more familiar "celebrity" gangsters of the day such as the Barrow gang, John Dillinger, Charles "Pretty Boy" Floyd, and others. The Barker boys, with their mother tagging along for the ride, and their partner Alvin Karpis, robbed banks and engaged in two major kidnappings before finally being stopped in a bloody four-hour gun battle with Hoover's Federal agents at a cottage in Oklawaha, Florida, on the shore of Lake Weir, on January 16, 1935. This is their story.
*Includes pictures *Includes a bibliography for further reading America has always preferred heroes who weren't clean cut, an informal ode to the rugged individualism and pioneering spirit that defined the nation in previous centuries. The early 19th century saw the glorification of frontier folk heroes like Davy Crockett and Daniel Boone. After the Civil War, the outlaws of the West were more popular than the marshals, with Jesse James and Billy the Kid finding their way into dime novels. And at the height of the Great Depression in the 1930s, there were the "Public Enemies," common criminals and cold blooded murderers elevated to the level of folk heroes by a public frustrated with their own inability to make a living honestly. Among America's most infamous "Public Enemies," perhaps the most unique and controversial was Kate Barker. With her prominent, hawk-tipped nose and plump, doughy face, framed by a classic dark curly coif and frilly day dresses to match, Ma Barker was as non-threatening as they come. Nary a second glance was given to this grandmotherly figure by those who crossed her path, perhaps at most a polite tip of the hat. Of course, as the age-old adage goes, appearances are often deceiving. According to the FBI and portrayals in popular culture, not only was Ma Barker a crass, greedy, and highly manipulative individual who coaxed her sons into the abyss-like vortex of criminality, she was the matriarchal mastermind of one of the most notorious gangs of the Dirty Thirties era. The public devoured the countless articles that their action-packed crimes generated with gusto, but few could compare to the meteoric whirlwind of morbid excitement that erupted when the sensational story of the Ma Barker Gang made its rounds. The Ma Barker Gang, as they were so branded, wasn't a typical band of small-time crooks. Quite the contrary, the unorthodox family-run enterprise was, as described by FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover, "the most vicious, cold-blooded crew of murderers, kidnappers, and robbers in recent memory." The gang was as accomplished - and dangerous - as it was elusive, and between 1930 and 1933 alone, they made off with an estimated $3 million. In their heyday, the gang boasted some 25 members, and through it all, the Barker boys remained its core members. Blood, as per the Barker code, would always be thicker than water. The Ma Barker Gang, which was reportedly governed by the middle-aged, misleadingly unassuming, yet apparently ride-or-die mother of the Barker boys, easily warranted a class of its own. The obvious novelty of the alleged gang leader's identity aside, the disturbing fates of the Barker brothers and many of their associates served as a cautionary tale about the dangers and delusions that ensue when one becomes consumed by unbridled avarice and arrogance. But why were the Barker brothers, once innocent young lads, steered so far off the path of righteousness? What was the true depth of Ma's involvement in the gang's laundry list of despicable crimes? How did the once untouchable gang's winning streak culminate in such catastrophic disaster? The pursuit of the Barkers was a piece of what made the FBI a national institution, and alongside similar efforts to bring John Dillinger and Bonnie & Clyde to justice, the "G-Men" became the symbol of law and order in the early 1930s. The FBI's dissemination of information about Ma Barker all but cemented her notorious reputation, but in the decades since, FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover has become a controversial figure himself and modern historians have reached different conclusions about Ma Barker's involvement in the gang's criminal activities. Alvin Karper, one of the gang's leaders, insisted, "The most ridiculous story in the annals of crime is that Ma Barker was the mastermind behind the Karpis-Barker gang...She wasn't a leader of criminals or even a criminal herself."
Traces the history of crime in St. Paul, Minnesota, from 1920 to 1936, describing specific incidents, profiling criminals, victims, and law enforcement officials, and looking at places where criminal activity occurred.
Ma Barker & her four Boys were the most notorious family of the 1930s. The excitement of the Great Depression gangsters of the 1930's was coming to an end. Clyde Barrow and Bonnie Parker were shot to death by police officers near Bienville Parish, Louisiana. on May 23, 1934. John Dillinger was shot to death in a dark Chicago alley on July 22, 1934. Charles "Pretty Boy" Floyd was shot and killed by FBI agents on a small farm as he ran across a cornfield in East Liverpool, Ohio on October 22, 1934. By 1935, FBI had set their sights on the notorious Barker-Karpis gang. Kate ""Ma"" Barker was not the matriarchal of the gang; in fact she was far from it. She had never been arrested nor did she have a criminal record, but she was far from innocent of criminal activities. The whole family died by bullets. Experience the times along with new facts and many unpublished photographs. This is their Story! EXTRA - The Historical move of the Ma Barker Hideout!
"Alvin Karpis was released from prison in December, 1968, on extradition parole to Canada, having served thirty-three years of a life sentence he received for the kidnapping of William Hamm, Jr., of the Hamm Breweries in Minneapolis-St. Paul. Over a period of a year, Karpis (with co-author Bill Trent), taped his vivid memories of a remarkable life in thirties crime, of his friendships with the pantheon of professional criminals, and of his prolonged pursuit by J. Edgar Hoover and the FBI."--Page [4 of cover].
In Public Enemies, bestselling author Bryan Burrough strips away the thick layer of myths put out by J. Edgar Hoover’s FBI to tell the full story—for the first time—of the most spectacular crime wave in American history, the two-year battle between the young Hoover and the assortment of criminals who became national icons: John Dillinger, Machine Gun Kelly, Bonnie and Clyde, Baby Face Nelson, Pretty Boy Floyd, and the Barkers. In an epic feat of storytelling and drawing on a remarkable amount of newly available material on all the major figures involved, Burrough reveals a web of interconnections within the vast American underworld and demonstrates how Hoover’s G-men overcame their early fumbles to secure the FBI’s rise to power.
This absorbing narrative chronicles the criminal adventures and misadventures of one of America's most infamous families. Ma Barker, her boys and their pals devised crime sprees that spread like prairie wildfires throughout the quiet little towns of mid-America in the 1920s and '30s.Raised in the rough-and-tumble boomtown of Tulsa, Oklahoma, Arrie Barker's four sons quickly moved up the ranks from childhood delinquency to robbery and murder, all the while enjoying their mother's outspoken protection and defense. As their crimes escalated, they found their niche in a network of gangs that roamed the heartland.Author Robert Winter has done an impressive job of researching the lives of these legendary anti-heroes, and he recreates their exploits -- from bravado to blunders -- in fascinating detail. His fast, crisp style and occasional bursts of humor appropriately echo the fast guns of these outlaws and the women who ran with them. Appearing in dramatic counterpoint are the brave lawmen who fought hard to protect their communities. Whether a historian or true-crime buff, you will find these stories of blowing safes, sawed-off shotguns and daring prison escapes fascinating and informative.
